Category : Literary Fiction

The Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman is a Literary Fiction/Young Adult novel by Robin Gregory.

Blurb

Having won 21 awards, The Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman is being lauded as a classic. A haunting, visionary tale spun in the magical realist tradition of Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time and Neil Gaiman’s The Ocean at the End of the Lane, the profoundly unique voice and heart-stirring narrative recall great works of fiction that explore the universal desire to belong.

Early 1900s, Western America. A lonely, disabled boy with a nasty temper and miraculous healing powers, Moojie is taken by his father to live at his grandfather’s wilderness farm. There, Moojie meets otherworldly social outcasts and wants to join them. Following a series of trials–magical and mystical–he is summoned by the call to a great destiny … if only he can survive one last terrifying trial.

A Word from the Author

It began as a memoir, but after four years of wrestling with form–and a narrator who annoyed me–I escaped to fiction. I wanted to write a novel in the tradition of my literary heros: Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Ursula Le Guin, Madeleine L’Engle. Through magical realism, I found freedom to explore mystical, spiritual, philosophical, and social themes. And, in the hands of a child-protagonist, magic began to happen. Ideas, words, and phrases took on a musical, lyrical quality.

My son inspired the story. He was born with the contradiction of special needs and healing gifts. Several of the miracles in the story actually happened. Writing the story was motivated by the desire to explore a boy-healer’s coming-of-age and awakening in early 1900s America. Publishing it was to lend inspiration, faith, and a soul-boost to readers who struggle with limitations. For who in this world doesn’t? I can name two. Both are cats.

Our Review

This is the best book I have read this year and not only that, when I finished reading I knew that I would have to read it again – it left such a special impression on me.
The author, Robin Gregory, is a master craftswoman of words, it was delightful to savor each word and also very much entertaining as the text is permeated with good healthy humor and very very strong characters – in my view one of the strongest points when assessing a novel!
The story itself is about a very special boy, Moojie Littleman, he is an orphan and he as some strange powers but also problems – for instance his body doesn’t work as it should. Moojie wants to fit in with the rest of humanity but finds it extremely hard as his disability puts people off. But he soon will find that he is not alone and will learn some very important lessons, for he comes across some very special friends – otherworldly beings who will help shape his path for good or for evil. As the story unfolds we read of Moojie’s successes and failures; We can see how Moojie deals with his strong and weak points: his power to heal; his disability and the frustration caused by it; other fellow humans; his strange friends from another plane of existence – are they good or are they evil? Can he fit in within their group?; his search for love and a family – not matter if it is human or not – a family to love and where he feels he is an integral and important part of it, and most importantly, where is loved back.

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Five Weeks to Jamaica is an adventure/romance (Literary Fiction) by Doug Oudin.

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Who in this wide and wonderful world has not wanted to say “Screw this!” and venture off to some exotic tropical destination?
Some years ago, four young adventurers from Southern California did just that—and this is their story.

Convinced that they were buying passage aboard a luxury cruise ship bound for Jamaica, Kurt Decker, his girlfriend Madison, his brother Larry, and their friend Marcos had high expectations. Those expectations were dashed the minute they saw the decidedly luxury-impaired motor vessel Explorer in Ensenada, Mexico. Despite numerous red flags, they boarded, and the bizarre odyssey that would forever change their lives began. The odd and eclectic group of passengers with whom they shared the dubious “comforts” of the stately ship of fools became family.

Their 5,780-nautical-mile journey took them along the coast of Mexico and Central America, through the Panama Canal, and across the Gulf of Mexico to Jamaica. The voyage inspired no shortage of laughter, tears, joy, and romance—or drama, excitement, and danger along the way too. But once in Jamaica, a new twist to the adventure developed. They agreed to set sail with a salty Englishman aboard a steel-hulled sailboat bound for Florida, where a vicious tropical storm en route threatened their very lives.

For those who love the sea, and for those who merely wonder about it, Five Weeks to Jamaica is a window into the capriciousness of the ocean and the tumultuous vagaries of human nature.

A Word from the Author

Doug Oudin is a man of the sea. For thirty-two years he served as harbormaster on Catalina Island, where he also wrote a weekly article for the Catalina Islander Newspaper. He also wrote for the Log Magazine for a few years, and published his memoir; ‘Between Two Harbors, Reflections of a Catalina Island Harbormaster’.

His experiences on the island, as well as numerous trips on boats cruising to Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean prompted him to write his novel, ‘Five Weeks to Jamaica’.
Based very loosely on one of those trips that he took from San Diego to Jamaica in the mid-seventies, this adventure follows four young friends who purchase a five-week cruise upon a so-called 147 ft. ‘luxury yacht’ from San Diego to Jamaica, for a mere $500. From the beginning, it becomes obvious that the yacht is not all it is supposed to be, and the two main characters, Madison and Kurt, nearly abort the journey. But Kurt’s brother Larry persuades them to give it a go, and they somewhat reluctantly agree. They had no idea what might lie ahead.

For the thirty-five passengers that sign on aboard the ill-fated yacht, the cruise holds a multitude of surprises, pleasures, and disappointments. Several people do abort the trip, while the ones that stay share the joys, the troubles, and the misadventures that occur at sea, and in the various ports they visit and explore.

When the yacht does finally reach Jamaica, nearly a month behind schedule, another odd twist to the adventure develops. Madison, Kurt, and Larry elect to stay in Jamaica for a while, immersing themselves in the incredible lifestyle of the Jamaican culture. Eventually they are ‘forced’ to leave, and they agree to join a crusty Englishman on a 47′ sailboat bound for Florida. It soon becomes obvious that the sailing odyssey is rife with problems, and the violent storm that ensues is merely a prelude to the journey’s life-changing conclusion.

For those that love adventure, romance, and discovery, ‘Five Weeks to Jamaica’ will take you there, and beyond. The author’s experience aboard boats, visiting foreign lands, and his background in writing for two publications, help bring this tale to life.

(Doug Oudin, February 2017)

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One man, many wives

In The Polygamist, William Irvine explores love, sex, and marriage within the context of an unusual household. An exploration of sexual fantasy and desire, ultimately The Polygamist is a coming of age story with a strong spiritual theme.

Set at the end of the seventies, a time when experimentation with alternative lifestyles and sexual relationships was rife, The Polygamist follows the fortunes of Omar Al Ghamdi, Saudi-born but educated in the West; a man who is the product of two irreconcilable cultures.

After two decades he has come to experience philandering as increasingly superficial; but vehemently opposed to monogamous fidelity, turns to polygamy as the solution to his high turnover existence. His hope is that taking several wives will provide him with a more honest and satisfying alternative, allowing him to engage in deeper relationships whilst still giving a long enough leash to his sexuality.

Having pursued his goal without compromise by entering into serial arranged marriages, he lives with his household on a remote house on Colva Beach in Goa. Does the reality live up to the dream? And, what is it like for the women? How can one man possibly satisfy multiple female partners?

Written from an unashamedly male perspective, The Polygamist will appeal to those wishing to understand male sexuality and the desires that shape all of our lives and relationships.

A Word from the Author

Living with a harem is a fairly common male fantasy. I’ve certainly held it myself for as long as I can remember. There have been periods when the idea came to me so often and so vividly that I actually contemplated making it a reality. How would I set about it? I would need arranged marriages, a large house somewhere in the world giving plenty of privacy, and so forth. The thinking I did provided me with the start point for the novel. In order to write The Polygamist I then enjoyed, even finding it cathartic, having to think through how the reality might actually take shape. What would it really be like to live with several wives?

Whilst the novel is erotic fiction, a sexual fantasy, I am also interested in sexual mysticism – which is explored in the novel – and in the nature of desire itself. What happens when we convert fantasy or desire into reality? What happens when the reality does not match what we wanted?

As far as possible I prefer to write from actual experience rather than imagination. The novel gave me a vehicle with which to relate a number of curious episodes from my early adult life in India. Fact – as the adage goes – is stranger than fiction; so much stranger that I sometimes worry if my readers will dismiss some of the real events described in the book as pure fiction.

(William Irvine, November2016)

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